Topic: Police overcome electronic locks, cut way in Kim DotCom's mansion
Anonymous A started this discussion 14 years ago #16,506
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/21/internet-piracy-megaupload-idUSL3E8CL02120120121Main suspect barricaded himself in safe room of mansion
* Police overcome electronic locks, cut way in
* Firearms, computers, goods seized
By Mantik Kusjanto
WELLINGTON, Jan 21 (Reuters) - New Zealand police broke through electronic locks and cut their way into a mansion safe room to arrest the alleged kingpin of an international Internet copyright theft case and seize millions of dollars worth of cars, artwork and other goods.
German national Kim Dotcom, also known as Kim Schmitz, was one of four men arrested on Friday in an investigation of the Megaupload.com website led by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The group was accused of engaging in a scheme that took more than $500 million away from copyright holders and generated over $175 million in proceeds from subscriptions and advertising.
A police official said on Saturday that dozens of officers, backed by helicopters, forced their way into the mansion, nestled in lush farmland, after Dotcom refused them entry.
"Despite our staff clearly identifying themselves, Mr Dotcom retreated into the house and activated a number of electronic-locking mechanisms," said Detective Inspector Grant Wormald from the Organised & Financial Crime Agency New Zealand.
Officers broke the locks and Dotcom barricaded himself into a safe room which officers had to cut their way into, he said.
"Once they gained entry into this room, they found Mr Dotcom near a firearm which had the appearance of a shortened shotgun," he said. "It was definitely not as simple as knocking at the front door."
PINK CADILLAC
Two firearms were seized and a 55-year-old New Zealand man had been charged with illegal possession of a pistol. Computers and documents were also retrieved and more than NZ$10 million ($8 million) was seized from financial institutions.
Television footage showed vehicles, including a pink Cadillac and a Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe, being removed from the property north of Auckland, New Zealand's largest city.
The arrests were made as the debate over online piracy reaches fever pitch in Washington where Congress is trying to craft tougher legislation.
Lawmakers stopped anti-piracy legislation on Friday, postponing a critical vote in a victory for Internet companies that staged a mass online protest against the fast-moving bills.
The movie and music industries want Congress to crack down on Internet piracy and content theft, but major Internet companies like Google and Facebook have complained that current drafts of the legislation would lead to censorship.
"Our focus now is on completing all the documentation required by crown law ahead of the next court appearance on Monday," Wormald said of the Auckland arrests.
"The team of four FBI staff will also remain working with us for the next few days."
Kim, who turns 38 on Saturday, and the other men made a brief court appearance on Friday will appear again on Monday. They face extradition and a trial in the United States.
On Friday, in a show of support, hackers attacked and temporarily disabled a number of government and entertainment company websites, including the U.S. Justice Department's website.
U.S. Justice Department officials have said that the estimate of $500 million in economic harm to copyright holders cited in a U.S. indictment was at the low end and could be significantly more.
The allegations included copyright infringement as well as conspiracy to commit copyright infringement, conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit racketeering. Two of the offences carry a maximum penalty of 20 years.
The companies charged, Megaupload Ltd and Vestor Ltd, were both registered in Hong Kong and owned either in large part or solely by Dotcom.
Megaupload has boasted of having more than 150 million registered users and 50 million daily visitors, according to the indictment. At one point, it was estimated to be the 13th most frequently visited website on the Internet.
Users could upload material to the company's sites which then would create a link that could be distributed. The sites, which included video, music and pornography, did not provide search capabilities but rather relied on others to publish the links, the U.S. indictment said.
Anonymous A (OP) double-posted this 14 years ago, 3 minutes later[^] [v] #283,374
Hong Kong freezes $42 mln in Megaupload raids
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gzmHGzcKWe_UkC9BM8YMkUu8zSKg?docId=CNG.30a77298d75d00299810f962d14dde62.391
HONG KONG — Hong Kong Customs officers have raided offices, domestic premises and luxury hotel suites as part of a worldwide FBI Internet piracy investigation into file-sharing site Megaupload.com.
One hundred officers took part in the raids Friday which seized a large amount of digital evidence and uncovered about HK$330 million ($42 million) in suspected crime proceeds, Customs said.
"The assets have been frozen in accordance with related ordinances. The operation is ongoing," it said in a statement.
Officers raided hotel suites costing HK$100,000 a day equipped with high-speed servers and large television screens which were suspected to be connected to the case.
Megaupload's website was shut down Thursday by US authorities who accuse it of one of the largest cases of copyright theft ever.
Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom, also known as Kim Schmitz, is being held in New Zealand following a police raid there.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gzmHGzcKWe_UkC9BM8YMkUu8zSKg?docId=CNG.30a77298d75d00299810f962d14dde62.391
HONG KONG — Hong Kong Customs officers have raided offices, domestic premises and luxury hotel suites as part of a worldwide FBI Internet piracy investigation into file-sharing site Megaupload.com.
One hundred officers took part in the raids Friday which seized a large amount of digital evidence and uncovered about HK$330 million ($42 million) in suspected crime proceeds, Customs said.
"The assets have been frozen in accordance with related ordinances. The operation is ongoing," it said in a statement.
Officers raided hotel suites costing HK$100,000 a day equipped with high-speed servers and large television screens which were suspected to be connected to the case.
Megaupload's website was shut down Thursday by US authorities who accuse it of one of the largest cases of copyright theft ever.
Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom, also known as Kim Schmitz, is being held in New Zealand following a police raid there.
(Edited 57 seconds later.)
Rainbow !DASHqGnDdc joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 3 hours later, 3 hours after the original post[^] [v] #283,397
The main problem with MU's freedom here will be that when a copyright notice came in, the actual file wasn't deleted - just the URL*.
* The site checked for duplications and just gave a unique URL if one already existed. This URL was the only thing removed when DMCA takedowns came in.
* The site checked for duplications and just gave a unique URL if one already existed. This URL was the only thing removed when DMCA takedowns came in.
Anonymous C joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 5 hours later, 8 hours after the original post[^] [v] #283,427
YIHAT~
Unintentional Jackass !LASXURl1b6 joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 1 hour later, 10 hours after the original post[^] [v] #283,439
@283,397 (Rainbow !DASHqGnDdc)
But that's only logical in the sense of such a business, isn't it? Reduces server costs from having duplicates of the same file.. plus, deleting the evidence is more of a crime, isn't it?
But that's only logical in the sense of such a business, isn't it? Reduces server costs from having duplicates of the same file.. plus, deleting the evidence is more of a crime, isn't it?
HaikerensGuide !10147STMWU joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 17 minutes later, 10 hours after the original post[^] [v] #283,443
Anonymous F joined in and replied with this 14 years ago, 20 minutes later, 10 hours after the original post[^] [v] #283,444
@283,439 (Unintentional Jackass !LASXURl1b6)
They can't just hold someone's copyrighted material because it makes running their business easier. Files were never actually removed at the request of copyright holders, just the URL. They could still potentially be accessed - from the indictment:
> In contrast, when any type of user on Megaupload.com uploads a copy of a popular file that is repeatedly downloaded, including infringing copies of copyrighted works available for download, that file remains on Mega Conspiracy-controlled computers and is available for distribution by anyone who can locate an active link to the file.
> The members of Mega Conspiracy do not meet these criteria because they are willfully infringing copyrights themselves on these systems; have actual knowledge that the materials on their systems are infringing (or alternatively know facts or circumstances that would make infringing material apparent); receive a financial benefit directly attributable to copyright-infringing activity where the provider can control that activity; and have not removed, or disabled access to, knowncopyright infringing material from servers they control.
They can't just hold someone's copyrighted material because it makes running their business easier. Files were never actually removed at the request of copyright holders, just the URL. They could still potentially be accessed - from the indictment:
> In contrast, when any type of user on Megaupload.com uploads a copy of a popular file that is repeatedly downloaded, including infringing copies of copyrighted works available for download, that file remains on Mega Conspiracy-controlled computers and is available for distribution by anyone who can locate an active link to the file.
> The members of Mega Conspiracy do not meet these criteria because they are willfully infringing copyrights themselves on these systems; have actual knowledge that the materials on their systems are infringing (or alternatively know facts or circumstances that would make infringing material apparent); receive a financial benefit directly attributable to copyright-infringing activity where the provider can control that activity; and have not removed, or disabled access to, knowncopyright infringing material from servers they control.